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Press TV, July 19 2020:… Baeidinejad said both the interview and the Friday broadcast “has been conducted on the orders of the network’s Saudi owners.” “Money, however, is not everything,” the envoy added in reference to the hefty sums that Riyadh allocates to such anti-Iran efforts. The Reuters’ report, meanwhile, refused to identify the Paris-based MKO by its name, instead referring to it as “an umbrella bloc of opposition groups in exile.” The attempt at glorifying the ferocious outfit and glossing over its history was, however, met by furious reactions among Iranian social media frequenters. Utterly Shameless London Based Saudi Network Glorifying Terrorism
Saudi Arabia’s Dirty Money Feeds Mujaheddin-e Khalq Organization
Utterly Shameless London Based Saudi Network Glorifying Terrorism ; Iranian Ambassador
Saudi network ’utterly shameless’ in airing anti-Iran terrorists event: Iranian UK envoy
This undated picture shows former Saudi Arabian spy chief, Prince Turki Al Faisal, and former US national security advisor, John Bolton (1st and 2nd R) paying respect to the terrorist anti-Iran Mujahedin-e-Khalq Organization (MKO)’s ringleader, Maryam Rajavi (L) during an annual MKO gathering in Paris.
Iran’s ambassador to the UK decries a Saudi-funded London-based television network that has been set up with the aim of smearing the Islamic Republic for its “utter shamelessness” in broadcasting the annual gathering of an anti-Iran terrorist cult.
“By broadcasting the gathering of the terrorist Mujahedin-e-Khalq Organization (MKO) that is the murderer of tens of thousands of innocent Iranians, the Saudi Iran International network displayed its full-scale obscenity and shamelessness,” Hamid Baeidinejad tweeted on Saturday.
شبکه سعودی ایران اینترنشنال باپخش گردهمایی گروه تروریستی منافقین که قاتل دهها هزار بیگناه ایرانی میباشد، وقاحت وبیشرمی تمام عیار خودرا به نمایش گذاشت. بعد از مصاحبه با سخنگوی گروه تروریستی الاحوازی، این برنامه نیز بدستور مالکان سعودی این شبکه صورت گرفته است. اما پول همه چیز نیست.
— Hamid Baeidinejad (@baeidinejad) July 18, 2020
The MKO has a squalid history of assassinations and bombings against the Iranian government and nation. It notoriously sided with Saddam Hussein during the former Iraqi dictator’s 1980-88 war on Iran.
Out of the nearly 17,000 Iranians killed in terrorist assaults since the victory of Iran’s Islamic Revolution, about 12,000 have fallen victim to the MKO’s acts of terror.
Western countries, topped by the United States, have, however, taken the group out of their terror blacklists.
The group throws lavish conferences every year in Paris, with certain American, Western, and Saudi officials as its guests of honor. These include former US national security advisor John Bolton, US President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, former Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper, and former Saudi Arabian spy chief, Prince Turki Al Faisal.
Maria Ryan Rudy Giuliani and Saudi Paid MEK Terrorists in Albania
This year’s event that was aired by Iran International at its full six-hour length on Friday was being held virtually as a precaution against the new coronavirus.
In addition to Giuliani, one of the group’s staunchest supporters, 18 sitting US senators were among those who addressed this year’s event, Reuters reported.
This is not the first time that the Saudi-funded network serves as anti-Iran terrorists’ mouthpiece.
In 2018, shortly after an attack by al-Ahwaziya, another Saudi-backed anti-Iran terrorist outfit, killed 25 people in southwestern Iran, the channel allowed the outfit’s spokesman to go live on air to defend the act of terror.
This year’s event that was aired by Iran International at its full six-hour length on Friday was being held virtually as a precaution against the new coronavirus.
In addition to Giuliani, one of the group’s staunchest supporters, 18 sitting US senators were among those who addressed this year’s event, Reuters reported.
This is not the first time that the Saudi-funded network serves as anti-Iran terrorists’ mouthpiece.
In 2018, shortly after an attack by al-Ahwaziya, another Saudi-backed anti-Iran terrorist outfit, killed 25 people in southwestern Iran, the channel allowed the outfit’s spokesman to go live on air to defend the act of terror.
Baeidinejad said both the interview and the Friday broadcast “has been conducted on the orders of the network’s Saudi owners.”
“Money, however, is not everything,” the envoy added in reference to the hefty sums that Riyadh allocates to such anti-Iran efforts.
The Reuters’ report, meanwhile, refused to identify the Paris-based MKO by its name, instead referring to it as “an umbrella bloc of opposition groups in exile.”
The attempt at glorifying the ferocious outfit and glossing over its history was, however, met by furious reactions among Iranian social media frequenters.
“Referring to NCRI as “an umbrella bloc of opposition groups in exile” is verging on fabrication. Conspicuous omission of the group’s actual name: MEK (MKO),” tweeted Esfandyar Batmanghelidj, founder and publisher of Bourse & Bazaar– a media company supporting business diplomacy between Europe and Iran.
.@IrishJReuters you’re probably the best-sourced journo when it comes to the Quai D’Orsay + Iran.
But referring to NCRI as “an umbrella bloc of opposition groups in exile” is verging on fabrication. Conspicuous omission of the group’s actual name: MEK.https://t.co/3sgyQVriGc
— Esfandyar Batmanghelidj (@yarbatman) July 18, 2020
Even Reuters, itself, admitted to the questionable “nature of the support that attends its (MKO’s) gatherings, which usually draws thousands of people, and the motivations of its speaker list that includes a raft of former politicians and lawmakers.”
Concern over UK-based Iranian TV channel’s links to Saudi Arabia
Numerous reports have emerged showing how the MKO lures youths around the world into the gatherings by promising them free ticket and stay. Leaks have also surfaced of astronomical paychecks handed over to the passionate-sounding former and current politicians that join the meetings.
The group’s current ringleader is Maryam Rajavi. The former ringleader, Massoud Rajavi, has made no public appearance since 2003, raising speculations that he might be dead even though the terrorist outfit does not confirm that.
In his 2016 speech at the MKO’s annual event, Al Faisal referred to the duo as “Mrs. Maryam Rajavi and your late husband Massoud Rajavi.”
Utterly Shameless London Based Saudi Network Glorifying Terrorism ; Iranian Ambassador
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Saudi Arabia’s ambivalent relationship to terrorism
Remember.Mojahedin Khalq (MKO, MEK, Rajavi cult) was one of the excuses of US attacking Iraq
The MEK’s man inside the White House (Maryam Rajavi cult, Mojahedin Khalq)
Khashoggi killed for disclosing Saudi funding of anti-Iran TV channel: Guardian
Press TV, November 09 2018:… Earlier this summer, the Iran International came under fire for praising a terrorist attack in Iran’s Ahvaz and broadcasting live coverage of a rally by the anti-Iran terrorist group Mujahedin Khalq Organization (MKO). At the time, the Guardian took note of Press TV’s complaint that the Western and Saudi media were refraining from terming the deadly attack as a terrorist act despite the large number of civilian …
US, MEK and Ahwazia Coordination
Khashoggi killed for disclosing Saudi funding of anti-Iran TV channel: Guardian
Saudi King Salman (R) speaks to Salah (L), son of Jamal Khashoggi, as Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman looks on in Riyadh on October 23, 2018. (Photo by Saudi Press Agency)
Saudi dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who was killed on October 2 in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, might have lost his life for disclosing Riyadh’s funding of an anti-Iran UK-based TV channel, the British daily Guardian suggests.
In a report on Oct. 2, the Guardian cited a source close to the Saudi government as saying that the anti-Iran London-based TV channel Iran International received an estimated $250m (£192m) from the Saudi royal court each year.
Now the Guardian correspondent, in a Friday tweet, has revealed that his source was Khashoggi, the Washington Post columnist who was assassinated on the same day as the report was published in a premeditated murder in Turkey blamed on Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman also known as MBS.
A tweet message by Guardian reporter Saeed Kamali Dehghani regarding Khashoggi’s murder scheme
I can confirm that Jamal Khashoggi was killed because of speaking to me on the phone from Istanbul in the morning on 26 September, revealing that London-based Iran International TV was funded by Mohammad Bin Salman and Saud al-Qahtani. Read this: https://t.co/nlutbjywi3
— Saeed Kamali Dehghan (@SaeedKD) November 9, 2018
The Guardian correspondent, Saeid Kamali Dehghan, later posted tweets that suggested he felt threats to his safety.
“My request to all family and friends is not to contact me at this moment, except very trusted one. My mum knows how to contact me. I trust my mum and a few people here,” he said in the tweet. However, he later deleted all his tweets regarding the case.
Iran’s Ambassador to London Hamid Baeidinejad praised the Guardian correspondent in a tweet and warned about the “risks” which he may encounter.
“Mr. Kamali Dehghan, the Guardian correspondent, confirmed in a brave step that Khashoggi had revealed before his death to him information about the establishment of the Persian-language ‘Iran International’ network by Saudi authorities,” he wrote.
“The relevant authorities are aware of possible risks to Mr. Kamali and the embassy is also in contact with them,” Baeidinejad added.
Last month, the Guardian also reported that the Iran International was being funded through a secretive offshore entity and a company whose director was a Saudi Arabian businessman with close links to bin Salman.
The source told the Guardian that Saud al-Qahtani, who served as media adviser to MBS and was among several senior officials removed in connection with Khashoggi’s murder, was involved in the funding of Iran International.
“It is money coming from the royal court,” the source – now revealed to be Khashoggi – said, when speaking about the Saudi crown prince.
Earlier this summer, the Iran International came under fire for praising a terrorist attack in Iran’s Ahvaz and broadcasting live coverage of a rally by the anti-Iran terrorist group Mujahedin Khalq Organization (MKO).
At the time, the Guardian took note of Press TV’s complaint that the Western and Saudi media were refraining from terming the deadly attack as a terrorist act despite the large number of civilian casualties in the incident.
Khashoggi, an outspoken critic of bin Salman, entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2, but never came back.
The Saudi kingdom, after denying the murder for several days, finally admitted that Khashoggi had been murdered in the consulate during an interrogation by rogue operatives that had gone wrong after diplomatic pressure grew tremendously on Riyadh to give an account on the mysterious fate of its national.
However, Saudi Arabia said that it did not know the whereabouts of the body, which is widely believed to have been dismembered.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan later announced the assassination had been ordered at the “highest levels” of the Saudi government.
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Mossad To Use Mercenary MEK For Fatal False Flag Op In Albania
Open Letter to Prime Minister Edi Rama – Secure the lives of all current and former MEK members
Also read:
https://iran-interlink.org/wordpress/?p=9757
Trump, Saudi Arabia and the Khashoggi Murder (U.S. also backs Mojahedin Khalq MEK Terrorists)
Robert Fantina, Counter Punch, October 28 2018:… U.S. spokespeople have praised the Mujahedin-E Khalq organization (MEK), which is responsible for thousands of deaths in Iran since 1979, and is now active outside that country, attempting to foment the overthrow of the government. The U.S. would be only too happy to see them succeed, and turn Iran into the chaos and disaster that Iraq and Yemen are today. Fortunately for Iran …
US, MEK and Ahwazia Coordination
Trump, Saudi Arabia and the Khashoggi Murder
Is there no crime so obvious, so egregious and so blatant that it won’t be overlooked by United States President Donald Trump, if doing so suits his twisted needs? He looks past Israeli barbarity, despite the obvious, unspeakable human rights abuses that that rogue, racist apartheid nation commits. He ignores the abject suffering caused by U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan. He excuses, with barely a mention, the Saudi bombing of a school bus full of Yemeni children. And now he is overlooking the cold-blooded murder of a Saudi journalist, which that government even concedes, after several rather incredulous stories, that it is, indeed, responsible for.
Any other U.S. president, Democrat or Republican, would certainly see this as a reason to at least review the U.S.’s unqualified support for the Saudi regime. He or she would express horror not only at the murder itself, but at the targeted silencing of a member of the press, one critical of Saudi Arabia. The massive arms sales to Saudi Arabia agreed upon would at least put on hold, while the entire situation is reviewed.
But not Trump; he was first happy to say that there must be some other explanation for why Jemal Khashoggi, a journalist for the Washington Post, entered the Saudi embassy in Turkey to obtain a marriage license, and never came out. Then, after numerous denials by the Saudi government that it had no knowledge of what may have happened, they stated that Khoshoggi died in a fistfight in the embassy! While this may be a prize winner in any contest for the most outrageous and unbelievable statements any government has ever made, Trump was happy to accept it.
Then, when the Saudi regime finally said that ‘rogue’ members of the government (are there any other kind in Saudi Arabia?) were responsible, Trump seemed perfectly content with that explanation. What consequences the perpetrators will experience is not known, nor are any expected. Certainly, none of this will impact U.S. relations with the Saudi regime.
One need not wonder why this is. Trump has set the U.S.’s deadly sites on Iran, and seeks Saudi support to implement whatever destructive and illegal plans he may have for that nation. Never mind that Saudi Arabia supports such terrorist groups as Jibhat al-Nusra, an organization that is on the U.S.’s official ‘terrorist’ list. The U.S. happily supports other terrorist groups in Syria and other locations around the world, so why object to one that the U.S. itself condemns?
U.S. spokespeople have praised the Mujahedin-E Khalq organization (MEK), which is responsible for thousands of deaths in Iran since 1979, and is now active outside that country, attempting to foment the overthrow of the government. The U.S. would be only too happy to see them succeed, and turn Iran into the chaos and disaster that Iraq and Yemen are today. Fortunately for Iran, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp prevents the MKO from having any significant power in Iran.
And so what if the brutal Saudi war on Yemen is causing millions of people to die of starvation? Why should the U.S. object to that, as long as it can enlist Saudi Arabia in its anti-Iran plans. Trump has stated more than once that the U.S. needs Saudi Arabia for that purpose, so basically whatever horrendous atrocities Saudi Arabia commits will be overlooked.
Since the U.S. is so busy condemning Iran while it ignores the unspeakable human rights abuses of some of its allies, including Saudi Arabia, let’s see what it is that Iran has done that has brought about Trump’s wrath.
+ Iran has supported and continues to support the legitimate Syrian government against U.S.-sponsored rebel groups. This has increased Iran’s power, influence and prestige in the Middle East, and since Israel wants complete hegemony in that part of the world, Iran’s growth cannot be tolerated.
+ Iran’ government supports the human rights struggles of the Palestinian people; in so doing, it also supports international law, something which the U.S. holds in contempt.
+ Iran is allied with Russia, which is the new enemy du jour of the U.S.
+ Lastly, the U.S. has not been able to ever accept that the people of Iran overthrew the brutal, oppressive, U.S-installed puppet, the Shah of Iran, in 1979. This will never do, since Iran, as of 1979, ceased bowing to the U.S. master.
It may be difficult for Trump, who’s attention span rivals that of a 2-year old, who believes that if he or she can’t see something, it no longer exists, to understand the rich history and culture of Iran. Consider the Cyrus Cylinder, dating from the sixth century, B.C., and discovered in Iraq in 1879. This artifact is sometimes seen as the first declaration of human rights known to man.
And what of the revolution, mentioned above? This was truly a people’s movement, indicating the power that people have over even the most brutal and powerfully-backed oppressor. Democracy, anyone?
Let’s compare now the number of countries that the U.S has invaded, just since World War II, with the number Iran invaded during that same time period. The total for the U.S is 16 (18, if you count Lebanon and Iraq twice). Here is the list: Korea, Cuba, Vietnam, Dominican Republic, Angola, Lebanon (twice), Grenada, Panama, Kuwat, Iraq (twice), Somalia, Haiti, Bosnia, Kosovo, Afghanistan, Syria. This, of course, is in addition to supporting brutal rebels in many democratic nations that didn’t toe the U.S. line.
Now, for the list of countries that Iran has invaded since World War II. The total is 0. One needs to look back to 1798 for the last time Iran invaded another nation.
Let’s look now to the current year. A White House report called the ‘Report on the Legal and Policy Frameworks Guiding the United States’ Military Force and Related National Security Operations’, or, unofficially, the war report, issued in March of this year, indicates that the U.S. is currently at war in seven countries: Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Libya, and Niger. Iran, by comparison, is supporting Syria, its ally, against foreign-financed and trained terrorists.
But according to the U.S. government, it is Iran that is the world’s foremost sponsor of world terrorism. It is Iran that is the major abuser of human rights. It is Iran that is causing untold trouble around the world.
It has been said that if one tells a lie often enough, eventually it will be believed. Trump seems to rely on this, as he attempts to prepare the hapless U.S. citizens for another needless, deadly, devastating war. But those citizens should beware: Iran is not Iraq. It is a large and powerful country, with powerful allies. The U.S. will wage war on Iran to its own detriment. It is hoped that such a war will never happen
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Also read:
Mehr News, February 22 2020:… Zarif eventually referred to Saudi Arabia’s support for the terrorist group of Mujaheddin-e Khalq Organization (MKO also known as MEK) and said, “This terrorist group, which gives $ 50,000 to John Bolton for each speech, does not receive its money on the streets and through donations, but they receive it from some individuals in Saudi… Utterly Shameless London Based Saudi Network Glorifying Terrorism ; Iranian Ambassador
Lachlan Markay, The Daily Beast, February 12 2020:… Brian Hook, a senior adviser to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the U.S. Special Representative for Iran, met on January 31 with Robert G. Joseph, a former senior State official who now represents the National Council of Resistance of Iran, according to a foreign agent filing that Joseph submitted to the… Utterly Shameless London Based Saudi Network Glorifying Terrorism ; Iranian Ambassador
El Pais, Madrid, January 30 2020:… The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) had an armed wing that was on the United States’ list of terrorist organizations until 2012, a year before the group funded Spain’s ultra-nationalist party. Founded in Tehran in 1965 by three university students, the organization’s military legion, the Mojahedin-e Khalq (MEK), underwent a lengthy journey… Utterly Shameless London Based Saudi Network Glorifying Terrorism ; Iranian Ambassador
Betsy Swan, Erin Banco, Asawin Suebsaeng, The Daily Beast, January 14 2020:… Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani—who the MEK hired to help it get off the U.S. list of foreign terrorist groups and who recently called the group “my MEK people”—welcomed the reversal. “[The MEK] is very supportive of a free…Iraq. It’s run by a great woman who is committed to… Utterly Shameless London Based Saudi Network Glorifying Terrorism ; Iranian Ambassador
Julian Pecquet, Al-Monitor, January 08 2020:… The disclosure raises new questions about ties between United Against Nuclear Iran CEO Mark Wallace and the National Council of Resistance of Iran, a Paris-based umbrella group dominated by the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq. The council also met twice with President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani around the time of the UN General Assembly, drawing renewed… Utterly Shameless London Based Saudi Network Glorifying Terrorism ; Iranian Ambassador
Nauman Sadiq, Euroasia Review, December 19 2019:… Unlike Lebanon and Iraq, though, Iran itself is immune to foreign-backed political demonstrations as it does not have any imperialist collaborators on the ground, besides a fringe militant group Mujahideen-e-Khalq (MEK) funded by the US, France and Israel. Iraq has been through the US occupation from 2003 to 2011 and is known to… Utterly Shameless London Based Saudi Network Glorifying Terrorism ; Iranian Ambassador
Mazda Parsi, Nejat Society, December 17 2019:… Massoud Khodabandeh explained that 3 tons of solid gold, a minimum of four suitcases of customized Rolex watches and fabric that had been used to cover the Muslim holy site of Kaaba in Mecca were among the commodities shipped from Saudi Arabia to MEK operatives in Baghdad. From there, the valuables would be… Utterly Shameless London Based Saudi Network Glorifying Terrorism ; Iranian Ambassador
Nora Doyle-Burr, Valley News, December 02 2019:… Giuliani referred to Ryan as “Dr.” because she holds a doctorate in health care administration from Warren National University, an online school that closed in 2009 following a failed accreditation bid. He also referred to Ryan as a “doctor” when he represented her daughter Vanessa, his personal assistant, in an insurance fraud case… Utterly Shameless London Based Saudi Network Glorifying Terrorism ; Iranian Ambassador
Press TV, November 14 2019:… The US-backed Mujahedin Khalq Organization (MKO , MEK) has a dark history of assassinations and bombings targeting both Iranian statesmen and people, making the country one of the major victims of terrorism in the world. The dying group, which is listed as a terrorist organization by much of the international community, had collaborated with the… Utterly Shameless London Based Saudi Network Glorifying Terrorism ; Iranian Ambassador
Ramin Hossein Abadian, Mehr News, November 13 2019:… The history of the terrorist activities of the terrorist group, the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK) is obvious to everyone which killed many Iranians in the early years of the victory of the Islamic Revolution. However, Saudi Arabia is one of the main supporters of MEK, and at the same time proclaims itself a… Utterly Shameless London Based Saudi Network Glorifying Terrorism ; Iranian Ambassador
Survivors of MEK Cult in Albania, Iran Azadi, November 09 2019:… Ehsan Bidi has lived in your country for 6 years, has a 10-year residency permit from the Albanian government and is a refugee by all international standards. He, as a human being, has the right to know why and with what legal authority and with what permission and for… Utterly Shameless London Based Saudi Network Glorifying Terrorism ; Iranian Ambassador
Eldar Mamedov, Lobe Log, November 07 2019:… NCRI is an umbrella for the Mujahedeen-e Khalk, or MEK, also known as MKO, and People’s Mujahedeen Organization of Iran (PMOI), an organization of Iranian dissidents in exile that seeks to overthrow the Islamic Republic. It was on the European Union list of terrorist organizations until 2009 and on the U.S. list until… Utterly Shameless London Based Saudi Network Glorifying Terrorism ; Iranian Ambassador
